imperialism
Dr. Charles McKelvey: « Venezuela is a threat to the neocolonial world-system »
Dr. Charles McKelvey. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: You have written a very relevant and important book to understand the Cuban Revolution: The Evolution and Significance of the Cuban Revolution. In the light of your book, can we say that the Cuban revolution was very important for the emancipation not only of the Cuban people but of all the peoples of Latin America?
Dr. Charles McKelvey: I consider the Cuban Revolution to be a paradigmatic Third World Revolution. It has the dual character that essentially has defined Third World movements and revolutions: (1) an anti-colonial/neocolonial revolution that seeks the liberation of the nation from foreign imperialist domination, and (2) a revolution of social liberation, seeking the transformation of capitalist economic-political-cultural institutions. Lire la suite »
Robert Bibeau: “Capitalism is war”
Robert Bibeau. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: Reading your very informative and gripping book, « La démocratie aux États-Unis, les mascarades électorales » (Democracy in the United States, electoral masquerades), a question arises: is there really a democracy in the United States and what is the use of elections in the USA?
Robert Bibeau: Yes, there is a real democracy for the bourgeoisie in the United States as in all the capitalist countries of this world. There is obviously no popular-proletarian « democracy » in the United States or any other country. Do you believe that joining a bourgeois party of a multibillionaire and its relations – given its power of pressure, of its television channel and its administrative centers – is of the same « democratic » weight as the adhesion of my neighbor – a Proletarian – to a pseudo-socialist political party? There is only the bourgeois left to let it believe. American workers know it, they do not move to vote and « to use the false power of the voting pencil » nor benefit from a fanciful electoral power exclusive to the rich. Lire la suite »
Prof. Atilio Borón: “In order to counter the imperialist created chaos honest leadership and strong institutions need to be accompanied by an intense and well organized popular mobilization”
Prof. Atilio Borón. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: How do you explain the retreat of the left and the rise of the far right in Latin America, as we saw in Brazil with the election of the fascist and torturer Jair Bolsonaro and that of Mauricio Macri in Argentina?
Prof. Atilio Borón: There are many reasons, which I could only summarize here. First, the intensity of the American counter offensive to defeat progressive governments has been impressive. Macri was an unexpected gift, more due to the mistakes of Kirchnerism than to anything else. But the victory was very important for the US. Bolsonaro is the product of the PT demobilization established by Lula since the beginnings, the complete corruption of the judicial system that put in jail Lula and allowed Bolsonaro not to be present in the presidential debates, the staunch support of the hegemonic media and, of course, serious mistakes of the Lula/Dilma governments which believed that social policy and the extraction of millions from extreme poverty would be enough to change popular consciousness and make those people supporters of progressive policies. Lire la suite »
Dr. Tomasz Pierscionek: “Capitalism is a failing system unable to solve major global problems”
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: You have worked on the theme of the Western Left. According to you, can we say that this left is in crisis?
Dr. Tomasz Pierscionek: The past decade of austerity, which has seen the rich get richer at the expense of everyone else and demonstrated that capitalism is a failing system unable to solve major global problems, provides an opportunity for the Left to demonstrate alternate programmes that benefit the majority rather than a wealthy and powerful minority. In Western Europe and the US, affected by years of indoctrination about the ‘failures’ of socialism, left-wing politicians and parties of labour have been cautious not too appear too left-wing and face the wrath of the rich and their media auxiliaries. In this way, they have failed to realise the potential of the Left to explain and advocate for socialist ideas and directly challenge capitalism. Far from being Marxists, as demonised by the media, the leaders of the Western Left have adopted the half-baked ideas of left of centre social-democracy – ie: let’s tinker at the edges of capitalism and smooth out its rougher bits whilst leaving its fundamental principles unchanged. Lire la suite »
Dr. T. J. Coles: “Unlike war, peace is not a profitable pursuit”
Dr. T. J. Coles. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: In your masterful book « Britain’s Secret Wars », you demonstrate the hidden face of British politics and its direct involvement in major conflicts via its intelligence services. Do not you think that Britain is responsible, like its US ally, for the chaos that reigns in areas like the Middle East and the Sahel?
Dr. T. J. Coles: Yes. Britain has both historic and contemporary responsibilities for much of the carnage in the Middle East, Central Asia, and elsewhere. There are different degrees of responsibility. When a gang commits a crime, for example a murder and armed robbery, each member of the gang is sentenced by a court of law in accordance with the degree of their participation in the crime. The person who pulled the trigger is the murderer, their associate is the accomplice, and so on. The same principle applies, or if we care about morality should apply, to international affairs. At the moment, the US is the global superpower, so the US bears most of the responsibility for invading Afghanistan, firing drones at Pakistanis, Somalis, and Yemenis, invading Iraq, and using proxy terrorists in Syria and Libya. Lire la suite »
Mike Ferner: “It is a function of our lack of democracy that the U.S. foreign policy is so militaristic and destructive.”
Mike Ferner. DR
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: In your opinion, is the United States of America a true democracy or is it a plutocratic regime?
Mike Ferner: The U.S. was never intended to be a true democracy.
First of all, it is a republic, meaning elected representatives, not people directly,institute the laws. This was modified somewhat when some states instituted initiative and referendum laws, allowing citizens to put proposed legislation directly to the voters by getting large numbers of signatures on petitions. Lire la suite »
Dr. Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison: “The pacification of Algeria was not a long calm river, on the contrary”
Dr. Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison. DR.
Mohsen Abdelmoumen: You wrote « Coloniser. Exterminer« . In your opinion, was Algeria a colonial laboratory?
Dr. Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison: Yes, we can indeed consider that Algeria has been a kind of laboratory for the elaboration of a certain number of techniques of war that can be described as counter-revolutionary war and repressive techniques, particularly after the appointment of Bugeaud as governor general of Algeria in 1840. The purpose of the appointment is to carry out what the military and political leaders of the time have already called « the pacification of Algeria » and to do this, General Bugeaud will employ a number of methods of warfare and repressive techniques among which raids whose it must be specified that they sometimes lead to the destruction of entire villages and oases, the aim being to expel « indigenous » populations, as it is said at the time, and, as it is also very commonly said, to repress the « Arabs » to drive them out of the territories they occupied until now so that Europeans in general and the French in particular, the settlers, could settle in a « pacified » environment. Lire la suite »
